Bessent says Commerce Department delayed adding Megaspeed to Entity List; Lutnick agrees to attend Senate hearing

According to a U.S. official, U.S. Commerce Secretary Lutnick has agreed to appear at a Senate Banking Committee hearing on December 10. After Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang's resignation, the Commerce Department's oversight of high-end AI chip exports is under increasing scrutiny, with multiple Republicans demanding that Lutnick explain why the Commerce Department apparently delayed adding Singapore company Megaspeed International to the Entity List, which would have restricted the company's access to advanced AI chips. The U.S. government suspects Megaspeed diverted advanced Nvidia chips to China to circumvent U.S. export bans; the company was previously led by Alice Huang, who has been accused of being a Chinese spy and of having an affair with Jensen Huang. Treasury Secretary Bessent told CNBC that the Treasury Department, the Department of War, the U.S. Trade Representative's Office and the State Department had for months supported adding Megaspeed to the Entity List, but the pen-holding authority rests with the Commerce Department; Republican Senator Jim Banks said the Commerce Department appeared to have used a loophole to let some chip sales through. Bessent declined to comment on reported discord between him and Lutnick, and the Commerce Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.